Shape Memory Alloys

CONTENTS
1. INTRODUCTION
MATERAILS

2. LITERATURE SURVEY
3. MECHANISM OF SHAPE MEMORY EFFECT AND
PSEUDO-ELASTICITY
SOLID STATE PHASE CHANGE
SHAPE MEMORY EFFECT
PSEUDO-ELASTICITY

4. TECHNIQUES USED TO MANUFACTURE SHAPE

MEMORY ALLOYS
5. DETAILS OF SHAPE MEMORY ALLOYS
CRYSTAL STRUCTURE
PROPERTIES
THERMO-MECHANICAL BEHAVIOR
COMMERCIAL SME ALLOYS
PRACTICAL LIMITATIONS
6. IMPORTANCE OF SHAPE MEMORY ALLOYS
7. SCOPE FOR FUTURE IMPROVEMENT
8. CONCLUSION
9. REFERENCE

Department of Mechanical Engineering, MSRIT Bangalore

Shape Memory Alloys

1. INTRODUCTION
The term Shape Memory Alloys (SMA) is applied to that group of metallic
materials that demonstrate the ability to return to some previously defined shape or
size when subjected to the appropriate thermal procedure. Generally, these
materials can be plastically deformed at some relatively low temperature, and upon
exposure to some higher temperature will return to their shape prior to the
deformation.
They exhibit another unique property called Pseudo-elasticity. Both the propertiesshape memory effect and pseudo-elasticity, are made possible through a solid-state
phase change i.e. a molecular rearrangement. In most shape memory alloys, a
temperature change of only about 10oC is necessary to initiate this phase change.
A shape memory alloy may be further defined as one that yields a thermo elastic
martensite. In this case, the alloy undergoes a martensitic transformation of a type
that allows the alloy to be deformed by a twinning mechanism below the
transformation temperature. The deformation is then reversed when the twinned
structure reverts upon heating to the parent phase.
Although a relatively wide variety of alloys are known to exhibit the shape
memory effect, only those that can recover substantial amounts of strain or that
generate significant force upon changing shape are of commercial interest. To date,
this has been the nickel-titanium alloys and copper-base alloys such as CuZnAl
and CuAlNi.
If the SMA encounters any resistance during its transformation, it can generate
extremely large forces. This phenomenon provides a unique mechanism for remote
actuation. This material is a lightweight, solid-state alternative to
conventional actuators such as hydraulic, pneumatic, and motor-based systems.
Shape-memory alloys have applications in industries including automotive,
aerospace, and bio-medical and robotics.
MATERIALS
As the shape memory effect became better understood, a number of other alloy
systems that exhibited shape memory were investigated. The alloy systems which
exhibit shape memory are:

Ag-Cd
Au-Cd

Department of Mechanical Engineering, MSRIT Bangalore

Shape Memory Alloys

Cu-Al-Ni
Cu-Sn approx. 15 at.% Sn
Cu-Zn
Cu-Zn-X (X = Si, Al, Sn)
Fe-Pt approx. 25 at.% Pt
Mn-Cu
Fe-Mn-Si
Pt alloys
Co-Ni-Al
Co-Ni-Ga
Ni-Fe-Ga
Ti-Pd in various concentrations
Ni-Ti (~55% Ni)
Ni-Ti-Nb
Ni-Mn-Ga

2. LITERATURE SURVEY
The first reported steps towards the discovery of the shape-memory effect were
taken in the 1930s. According to Otsuka and Wayman, A. lander discovered the
pseudo elastic behavior of the Au-Cd alloy in 1932. Greninger and Mooradian
(1938) observed the formation and disappearance of a martensitic phase by
decreasing and increasing the temperature of a Cu-Zn alloy. The basic
phenomenon of the memory effect governed by the thermo-elastic behavior of the
martensitic phase was widely reported a decade later by Kurdjumov and Khandros
(1949) and also by Chang and Read (1951).
The nickel-titanium alloys were first developed in 19621963 by the United
States Naval Ordnance Laboratory and commercialized under the trade
name Nitinol (an acronym for Nickel Titanium Naval Ordnance Laboratories).
Their remarkable properties were discovered by accident. A sample that was bent
out of shape many times was presented at a laboratory management meeting. One
of the associate technical directors, Dr. David S. Muzzey, decided to see what
would happen if the sample was subjected to heat and held his pipe lighter
underneath it. To everyone's amazement the sample stretched back to its original
shape.

Department of Mechanical Engineering, MSRIT Bangalore

Shape Memory Alloys

In the 1960s Buehler and Wiley developed a series of nickel-titanium alloys, with a
composition of 53 to 57 % nickel by weight, which exhibited an unusual effect:
severely deformed specimens of the alloys, with residual strains of 8-15%,
regained their original shape after a thermal cycle.
It was later found that not only do other materials have the shape-memory
property, but that at sufficiently high temperatures such materials also possess the
property of super elasticity, that is, the recovery of large deformations during
mechanical loading-unloading cycles performed at constant temperature.

3. MECHANISM OF SHAPE MEMORY EFFECT AND

PSEUDO-ELASTICITY
SOLID-STATE PHASE CHANGE
Also known as Diffusionless Transformation, it is responsible for shape memory
effect seen in shape memory alloys. The alloys exist transform from Austenite to
Martensite upon cooling.

Figure 1: Transformation Hysteresis

Mf is the temperature at which the transition to martensite completes upon cooling.

Accordingly, during heating As and Af are the temperatures at which the
transformation from martensite to austenite starts and finishes.
In this figure, (T) represents the martensite fraction. The difference between the
heating transition and the cooling transition gives rise to hysteresis where some of
Department of Mechanical Engineering, MSRIT Bangalore

Shape Memory Alloys

the mechanical energy is lost in the process. The shape of the curve depends on the
material properties of the shape-memory alloy, such as the alloying and work
hardening.
The transition from the martensite phase to the austenite phase is only dependent
on temperature and stress, not time, as most phase changes are, as there is no
diffusion involved. Similarly, the austenite structure receives its name from steel
alloys of a similar structure. It is the reversible diffusionless transition between
these two phases that results in special properties. While martensite can be formed
from austenite by rapidly cooling carbon-steel, this process is not reversible, so
steel does not have shape-memory properties.
SHAPE MEMEORY EFFECT
The shape memory effect is observed when the temperature of a piece of shape
memory alloy is cooled to below the temperature Mf. At this stage the alloy is
composed of martensite which can be easily deformed. After distorting the shape
memory alloy, the original shape can be recovered simply by heating the wire
above the temperature Af. The heat transferred to the wire is the power driving the
molecular rearrangement of the alloy, similar to heat melting ice into water, but the
alloy remains solid. The deformed matensite is now transformed to the cubic
austenite, which is configured in the original shape of the wire.

Figure 2: Shape Memory Effect

Department of Mechanical Engineering, MSRIT Bangalore

Shape Memory Alloys

Shape-memory alloys have different shape-memory effects. Two common effects

are one-way and two-way shape memory.
One-way memory effect
When a shape-memory alloy is in its cold state (below As), the metal can be bent or
stretched and will hold those shapes until heated above the transition temperature.
Upon heating, the shape changes to its original. When the metal cools again it will
remain in the hot shape, until deformed again.
With the one-way effect, cooling from high temperatures does not cause a
macroscopic shape change. A deformation is necessary to create the lowtemperature shape. On heating, transformation starts at As and is completed
at Af (typically 2 to 20 C or hotter, depending on the alloy or the loading
conditions). As is determined by the alloy type and composition and can vary
between 150 C and 200 C.

Figure 3: One-way memory

Figure 4: Two-way memory

Two-way memory effect

The two-way shape-memory effect is the effect that the material remembers two
different shapes: one at low temperatures, and one at the high-temperature shape.
A material that shows a shape-memory effect during both heating and cooling is
called two-way shape memory. This can also be obtained without the application
of an external force (intrinsic two-way effect). The reason the material behaves so
differently in these situations lies in training. Training implies that a shape memory
can "learn" to behave in a certain way. Under normal circumstances, a shapememory alloy "remembers" its low-temperature shape, but upon heating to recover
Department of Mechanical Engineering, MSRIT Bangalore

Shape Memory Alloys

the high-temperature shape, immediately "forgets" the low-temperature shape.

However, it can be "trained" to "remember" to leave some reminders of the
deformed low-temperature condition in the high-temperature phases. There are
several ways of doing this. A shaped, trained object heated beyond a certain point
will lose the two-way memory effect, this is known as "amnesia".
PSEUDO ELSATICITY
One of the commercial uses of shape-memory alloy exploits the pseudo-elastic
properties of the SMA during the high-temperature (austenitic) phase
(temperatures between Af and Md), without thermal activation (isothermic). This
means that an SMA in its elastic form can undergo a deformation approximately
ten times greater than that of a spring-steel equivalent, and full elastic recovery to
the original geometry may be expected. This may be possible through several
million cycles.
The frames of reading glasses have been made of shape-memory alloy as they can
undergo large deformations in their high-temperature state and then instantly revert
to their original shape when the stress is removed. This is the result of pseudo
elasticity; the martensitic phase is generated by stressing the metal in
the austenitic state and this martensite phase is capable of large strains. With the
removal of the load, the martensite transforms back into the austenite phase and
resumes its original shape.
This allows the metal to be bent, twisted and pulled, before reforming its shape
when released. This means the frames of shape-memory alloy glasses are claimed
to be "nearly indestructible" because it appears no amount of bending results in
permanent plastic deformation.

Figure 5: Pseudo-elasticity

Department of Mechanical Engineering, MSRIT Bangalore

Shape Memory Alloys

4. TECHNIQUES USED TO MANUFACTURE SHAPE

MEMORY ALLOYS
Shape-memory alloys are typically made by casting, using vacuum arc melting or
induction melting. These are specialist techniques used to keep impurities in the
alloy to a minimum and ensure the metals are well mixed. The ingot is then hot
rolled into longer sections and then drawn to turn it into wire.
The way in which the alloys are "trained" depends on the properties wanted. The
"training" dictates the shape that the alloy will remember when it is heated. This
occurs by heating the alloy so that the dislocations re-order into stable positions,
but not so hot that the material recrystallizes. They are heated to
between 400 C and 500 C for 30 minutes.
They are then shaped while hot and are cooled rapidly by quenching in water or by
cooling with air.
Manufacture of Nickel-Titanium alloy (Nitinol):
Nitinol is exceedingly difficult to make, due to the exceptionally tight
compositional control required, and the tremendous reactivity of titanium. Every
atom of titanium that combines with oxygen or carbon is an atom that is robbed
from the NiTi lattice, thus shifting the composition and making the transformation
temperature that much lower. There are two primary melting methods used today:
Vacuum Arc Re-melting: This is done by striking an electrical arc between the raw
material and a water-cooled copper strike plate. Melting is done in a high vacuum,
and the mold itself is water-cooled copper, so no carbon is introduced during
melting.
Process description: The alloy to undergo VAR is formed into a cylinder typically
by vacuum induction melting (VIM). This cylinder, referred to as an electrode is
then put into a large cylindrical enclosed crucible and brought to a
metallurgical vacuum (0.0010.1 mmHg [0.1313.33 Pa]). At the bottom of the
crucible is a small amount of the alloy to be re-melted, which the top electrode is
brought close to prior to starting the melt. Several kilo amperes of DC current are
used to start an arc between the two pieces, and from there, a continuous melt is
derived. The crucible (typically made of copper) is surrounded by a water jacket
used to cool the melt and control the solidification rate. To prevent arcing between
the electrode and the crucible side walls, the diameter of the crucible is larger than
that of the electrode.

Department of Mechanical Engineering, MSRIT Bangalore

Shape Memory Alloys

Figure 6: Vacuum arc re-melting

As a result, electrode must be lowered as the melt consumes it. Control of the
current, cooling water, and electrode gap is essential to effective control of the
process, and production of defect free material.
Ideally, the melt rate stays constant throughout the process cycle, but control of the
process is not simple. This is because there is very complex heat transfer going on
involving conduction, radiation, convection (within the liquid metal). Ensuring the
consistency of the melt process in terms of pool geometry, and melt rate is pivotal
in ensuring the best possible properties from the alloy.
Vacuum Induction Melting: This is done by using alternating magnetic fields to
heat the raw materials in a crucible (generally carbon). This is also done in a high
vacuum, but carbon is introduced during the process.
Procedure: Vacuum induction melting uses currents within a vacuum to melt metal.
VIM involves placing a core-less induction furnace into a vacuum chamber. The
heat used to start the melting process comes from an induced current called an
eddy current. The melting and casting operations are then carried out at low
pressures to control the entire alloy chemistry process.

Department of Mechanical Engineering, MSRIT Bangalore

Shape Memory Alloys

Figure 7: Vacuum induction melting

Eddy currents: Eddy currents make the vacuum induction melting process possible.
These eddy currents are induced currents in a conductor created by a changing
magnetic field. The metals begin to melt after heat is created from the eddy
currents. The process becomes simplified to a matter of changing the magnetic
field within a conductor. This automatically creates the VIM through the eddy
current because the conductor where the current was applied is already a vacuum.
The change in magnetic field can be easily accomplished by placing a metal with
running current next to the conductor. This exterior current will induce a magnetic
field which is a change in magnetic field from 0 tesla to the amount proportional to
the current.
When producing nickel titanium, the process of VIM sometimes causes carbon
contamination which causes some of the titanium ions to form titanium
carbide (TiC). These TiC particles change the transformation temperature along
with the strength of the alloy. This is one drawback with the process of vacuum
induction melting.
While both methods have advantages, there are no substantive data showing that
material from one process is better than the other. Other methods are also used on a
boutique scale, including plasma arc melting, induction skull melting, and e-beam
melting. Physical vapor deposition is also used on a laboratory scale.
Hot working of nitinol is relatively easy, but cold working is difficult because the
enormous elasticity of the alloy increases die or roll contact, leading to tremendous
frictional resistance and tool wear. For similar reasons, machining is extremely
difficultto make things worse, the thermal conductivity of nitinol is poor, so heat
is difficult to remove. Grinding (abrasive cutting), Electrical discharge
machining (EDM) and laser cutting are all relatively easy.
Department of Mechanical Engineering, MSRIT Bangalore

10

Shape Memory Alloys

Heat treating nitinol is delicate and critical. It is the essential tool in fine-tuning the
transformation temperature.
Programming
The use of the one way shape memory or super elastic property of NiTi for a
specific application requires a piece of SMA to be molded into the desired shape.
The characteristic heat treatment is then done to set the specimen to its final shape.
The heat treatment methods used to set shapes in both the shape memory and the
super elastic forms of NiTi are similar. Adequate heat treatment parameters are
needed to set the shape and properties of the item.
The two way memory training procedure can be made by SME training or SIM
training. In SME training, the specimen is cooled below Mf and bent to the desired
shape. It is then heated to a temperature above Af and allowed freely to take its
austenite shape. The procedure is repeated 20 30 times which completes the
training. The sample now assumes its programmed shape upon cooling under Mf
and to another shape when heated above Af. In SIM (stress induced martensite)
training, the specimen is bent just above Ms to produce the preferred variants of
SIM and then cooled below Mf temperature. Upon subsequent heating above the Af
temperature the specimen takes its original austenitic shape. This procedure is
repeated 20-30 times.

5. DETAILS OF SHAPE MEMORY ALLOYS

CRYSTAL STRUCTURE
Many metals have several different crystal structures at the same composition, but
most metals do not show this shape-memory effect. The special property that
allows shape-memory alloys to revert to their original shape after heating is that
their crystal transformation is fully reversible. In most crystal transformations, the
atoms in the structure will travel through the metal by diffusion, changing the
composition locally, even though the metal as a whole is made of the same atoms.
A reversible transformation does not involve this diffusion of atoms, instead all the
atoms shift at the same time to form a new structure, much in the way a
parallelogram can be made out of a square by pushing on two opposing sides. At
different temperatures, different structures are preferred and when the structure is
cooled through the transition temperature, the martensitic structure forms from the
austenitic phase.

Department of Mechanical Engineering, MSRIT Bangalore

11

Shape Memory Alloys

PROPERTIES
The copper-based and NiTi-based shape-memory alloys are considered to be
engineering materials. These compositions can be manufactured to almost any
shape and size.
The yield strength of shape-memory alloys is lower than that of conventional steel,
but some compositions have a higher yield strength than plastic or aluminum. The
yield stress for Ni Ti can reach 500 MPa. The high cost of the metal itself and the
processing requirements make it difficult and expensive to implement SMAs into a
design. As a result, these materials are used in applications where the super elastic
properties or the shape-memory effect can be exploited. The most common
application is in actuation.
One of the advantages to using shape-memory alloys is the high level of
recoverable plastic strain that can be induced. The maximum recoverable strain
these materials can hold without permanent damage is up to 8% for some alloys.
This compares with a maximum strain 0.5% for conventional steels.
THERMOMECHANICAL BEHAVOIR
The mechanical properties of shape memory alloys vary greatly over the
temperature range spanning their transformation. This is seen in Fig. 6, where
simple stress-strain curves are shown for a nickel titanium alloy that was tested in
tension below, in the middle of, and above its transformation temperature range.
The martensite is easily deformed to several percent strain at quite a low stress,
whereas the austenite (high temperature phase) has much higher yield and flow
stresses. The dashed line on the martensite curve indicates that upon heating after
removing the stress, the sample remembered its unstrained shape and reverted to it
as the material transformed to austenite. No such shape recovery is found in the
austenite phase upon straining and heating, because no phase change occurs.
An interesting feature of the stress-strain behavior is seen in Fig.6c, where the
material is tested slightly above its transformation temperature. At this
temperature, martensite can be stress-induced. It then immediately strains and
exhibits the increasing strain at constant stress behavior, seen in AB. Upon
unloading, though, the material reverts to austenite at a lower stress, as seen in line
CD, and shape recovery occurs, not upon the application of heat but upon a
reduction of stress. This effect, which causes the material to be extremely elastic, is
known as pseudo elasticity. Pseudo elasticity is nonlinear. The Young's modulus is
therefore difficult to define in this temperature range as it exhibits both
temperature and strain dependence.
Department of Mechanical Engineering, MSRIT Bangalore

12

Shape Memory Alloys

Figure 8: Stress- strain curve for NiTi alloy

COMMERCIAL SME ALLOYS

The only two alloy systems that have achieved any level of commercial
exploitation are the NiTi alloys and the copper-base alloys. Properties of the two
systems are quite different. The NiTi alloys have greater shape memory strain (up
to 8% versus 4 to 5% for the copper-base alloys), tend to be much more thermally
stable, have excellent corrosion resistance compared to the copper-base alloys'
medium corrosion resistance and susceptibility to stress-corrosion cracking, and
have much higher ductility. On the other hand, the copper-base alloys are much
less expensive, can be melted and extruded in air with ease, and have a wider range
of potential transformation temperatures. The two alloy systems thus have
advantages and disadvantages that must be considered in a particular application.

Department of Mechanical Engineering, MSRIT Bangalore

13

Shape Memory Alloys

The properties of the commercial shape memory alloys are:

Nickel-Titanium Alloys: The basis of the nickel-titanium system of alloy is the

binary, equi-atomic intermetallic compound of NiTi. The intermetallic compound
is extraordinary because it has a moderate solubility range for excess nickel or
titanium, as well as most other metallic elements, and it also exhibits a ductility
comparable to most ordinary alloys. This solubility allows alloying with many of
the elements to modify both the mechanical properties and the transformation
properties of the system. Excess nickel, in amounts up to about 1%, is the most
common alloying addition. Excess nickel strongly depresses the transformation
temperature and increases the yield strength of the austenite. Other frequently used
elements are iron and chromium (to lower the transformation temperature), and
copper (to decrease the hysteresis and lower the deformation stress of the
martensite). Because common contaminants such as oxygen and carbon can also
shift the transformation temperature and degrade the mechanical properties, it is
also desirable to minimize the amount of these elements.

Department of Mechanical Engineering, MSRIT Bangalore

14

Shape Memory Alloys

Commercial copper-base shape memory alloys: They are available in ternary

CuZnAl and CuAlNi alloys, or in their quaternary modifications containing
manganese. Elements such as boron, cerium, cobalt, iron, titanium, vanadium, and
zirconium are also added for grain refinement.
CuZnAl was the first copper based SMA to be commercially exploited and the
alloys typically contain 15-30 wt% Zn and 3-7 wt% Al. The useful transformation
temperature for this system ranges from -100oC to +100oC. The major advantage of
the CuZnAl alloys is that they are made from relatively inexpensive metals by
conventional metallurgical processes which makes them the cheapest of the
commercial SMAs. The major disadvantages of this alloy system are that the
martensitic phase is stabilized by long term aging even at room temperature
causing an increase of the transformation temperature, and the alloy structure
decomposes when exposed to temperatures above 100C. These disadvantages have
more than outweighed the cost advantage of the CuZnAl alloys and this alloy
system is rarely used today.
Copper-aluminum-nickel (CuAlNi) alloys have undergone extensive development
and are now preferred to the CuZnAl alloys. The alloys typically contain 11-14.5%
Al and 3-5% Ni and have transformation temperatures in the range 80-200C
dependent on their composition, the transformation temperature is particularly
sensitive to the aluminum content. The alloy is again made from relatively
inexpensive elements but its processing is more difficult since it can only be hot
worked and the final heat treatment has to be tightly controlled to produce an alloy
with the desired transformation temperature. These processing difficulties have
made this alloy system more expensive than CuZnAl but it is still less expensive
than NiTi. Some improvement of the mechanical properties can be obtained by
reducing the aluminum content below 12%, adding 2% manganese to reduce the
transformation temperature and 1% titanium as a grain refiner but these additions
can affect the stability of the alloy structure. The major advantages of the CuAlNi
system are its wide range of useful transformation temperatures, its stability at
elevated temperature making it the only system that can be used for applications
above 100C, its small hysteresis and relatively low cost.
PRACTICAL LIMITATIONS
Response time and response symmetry
SMA actuators are typically actuated electrically, where an electric current results
in Joule heating. Deactivation typically occurs by free convective heat transfer to
the ambient environment. Consequently, SMA actuation is typically asymmetric,
Department of Mechanical Engineering, MSRIT Bangalore

15

Shape Memory Alloys

with a relatively fast actuation time and a slow de-actuation time. A number of
methods have been proposed to reduce SMA deactivation time, including forced
convection and lagging the SMA with a conductive material in order to manipulate
the heat transfer rate.
Structural fatigue and functional fatigue
SMA is subject to structural fatigue a failure mode by which cyclic loading
results in the initiation and propagation of a crack that eventually results in
catastrophic loss of function by fracture. The physics behind this fatigue mode is
accumulation of microstructural damage during cyclic loading.
In addition to this failure mode, which is not exclusively observed in smart
materials, SMA are also subject to functional fatigue, whereby the SMA does not
fail structurally, but, due to a combination of applied stress, and/or temperature,
loses its ability to undergo a reversible phase transformation. For example, the
working displacement in an actuator decreases with increasing cycle numbers. The
physics behind this is gradual change in microstructure.
Unintended actuation
SMA actuators are typically actuated electrically by Joule heating. If the SMA is
used in an environment where the ambient temperature is uncontrolled,
unintentional actuation by ambient heating may occur.

6. IMPORTANCE OF SHAPE MEMEORY ALLOYS

The main advantages of shape memory alloys are:

Bio-compatibility
Diverse Fields of Application
Good Mechanical Properties (strong, corrosion resistant)

There are a wide variety of uses for the shape memory alloys. Some of the
categories of application are:
Free recovery: It is illustrated when an SMA component is deformed while
martensitic, and the only function required of the shape memory is that the
component return to its previous shape (while doing minimal work) upon heating.
A prime application of this is the blood-clot filter, also called a VENA-CAVA
filter developed by M. Simon. The filters are constructed from Ni-Ti wires and are
used in one of the outer heart chambers to trap blood clots, which might be the
cause of a fatality if allowed to travel freely around the blood circulation system.
The specially designed filters trap these small clots, preventing them from entering
Department of Mechanical Engineering, MSRIT Bangalore

16

Shape Memory Alloys

the pulmonary system and causing a pulmonary embolism. The vena-cava filter is
introduced in a compact cylindrical form about 2.0-2.5mm in diameter. When
released it forms an umbrella shape. The part is chilled so it can be collapsed and
inserted into the vein, then body heat is sufficient to turn the part to its functional
shape.

Figure 9: Vena-cava

Constrained Recovery: The most successful example of this type of product is

undoubtedly the Cryofit hydraulic couplings made by Raychem Corporation.
These fittings are manufactured as cylindrical sleeves slightly smaller than the
metal tubing they are to join. Their diameters are then expanded while martensitic,
and, upon warming to austenite, they shrink in diameter and strongly hold the tube
ends. The tubes prevent the coupling from fully recovering its manufactured shape,
and the stresses created as the coupling attempts to do so are great enough to create
a joint that, in many ways, is superior to a weld.

Figure 10: CRYOFIT hydraulic coupling

Force Actuators: In some applications, the shape memory component is designed

to exert force over a considerable range of motion, often for many cycles. In an
electrical connector system, the SMA component is used to force open a spring
when the connector is heated. This allows force-free insertion or withdrawal of a
Department of Mechanical Engineering, MSRIT Bangalore

17

Shape Memory Alloys

circuit board in the connector. Upon cooling, the NiTi actuator becomes weaker
and the spring easily deforms the actuator while it closes tightly on the circuit
board and forms the connections.
SMA thermal actuators are also used in domestic safety devices. One of the most
frequent causes of injury in the household and in hospitality buildings such as
hotels is excessively hot water in the sink, tub and shower. An anti-scald valve is
now being produced which employs a small cantilever NiTiCu element
which, when heated to 48C, the temperature above which scalding will occur,
closes the valve. The valve automatically reopens when the water temperature is
safe.

Figure 11: Cantilever NiTiCu elements

Figure12: Anti-scald shower valve

Based on the same principle, CuZnAl shape memory alloys have found several
applications in this area. One such example is a fire safety valve, which
incorporates a CuZnAl actuator designed to shut off toxic or flammable gas flow
when fire occurs. Lines that carry highly flammable and toxic fluids and gases
must have a great amount of control to prevent catastrophic events. This can
greatly decrease devastating problems in industries that involve petrochemicals,
semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, and large oil and gas boilers.

Figure 13: Fire check industrial safety valve

Department of Mechanical Engineering, MSRIT Bangalore

18

Shape Memory Alloys

Proportional Control: It is possible to use only a part of the shape recovery to

accurately position a mechanism by using only a selected portion of the recovery
because the transformation occurs over a range of temperatures rather than at a
single temperature. A device has been developed by Beta Phase Inc. in which a
valve controls the rate of fluid flow by carefully heating a shape-memory alloy
component just enough to close the valve the desired amount. Repeatable
positioning within 0.25 mm (0.00001 in.) is possible with this technique.

Figure 14: Proportional control

Super-elastic Applications: A number of products have been brought to market

that use the pseudo-elastic (or super-elastic) property of these alloys. Eyeglass
frames that use super-elastic NiTi to absorb large deformations without damaging
the frames are now marketed, and guide wires for steering catheters into vessels in
the body have been developed using NiTi wire, which resists permanent
deformation if bent severely. Arch wires for orthodontic correction using NiTi
have been used for many years to give large rapid movement of teeth.

Figure 15: Eye glass frames made of NiTi

Department of Mechanical Engineering, MSRIT Bangalore

19

Shape Memory Alloys

Some areas of application for shape memory alloys are:

Bioengineering:
Bones: Broken bones can be mended with shape memory alloys. The alloy plate
has a memory transfer temperature that is close to body temperature, and is
attached to both ends of the broken bone. From body heat, the plate wants to
contract and retain its original shape, therefore exerting a compression force on the
broken bone at the place of fracture. After the bone has healed, the plate continues
exerting the compressive force, and aids in strengthening during rehabilitation.
Memory metals also apply to hip replacements, considering the high level of superelasticity.

Figure 16: Repair of fractured bones using shape memory alloy plates and screws

Reinforcement for Arteries and Veins: For clogged blood vessels, an alloy tube is
crushed and inserted into the clogged veins. The memory metal has a memory
transfer temperature close to body heat, so the memory metal expands to open the
clogged arteries.

Figure 17: Stent graft

Dental wires: used for braces and dental arch wires, memory alloys maintain their
shape since they are at a constant temperature, and because of the super elasticity
of the memory metal, the wires retain their original shape after stress has been
applied and removed.
Department of Mechanical Engineering, MSRIT Bangalore

20

Shape Memory Alloys

Aircraft maneuverability: Aircraft maneuverability depends heavily on the

movement of flaps found at the rear or trailing edge of the wings. The efficiency
and reliability of operating these flaps is of critical importance. Most aircraft in the
air today operate these flaps using extensive hydraulic systems. These hydraulic
systems utilize large centralized pumps to maintain pressure, and hydraulic lines to
distribute the pressure to the flap actuators. In order to maintain reliability of
operation, multiple hydraulic lines must be run to each set of flaps. This complex
system of pumps and lines is often relatively difficult and costly to maintain. The
flaps on a wing generally have the same layout shown in figure, with a large
hydraulic system attached to it at the point of the actuator connection.

Figure 18: Aircraft wing and flap arrangement

Figure 19: Electromechanical actuator

"Smart" wings, which incorporate shape memory alloys, are typically much more
compact and efficient, in that the shape memory wires only require an electric
current for movement.

Figure 20: Hinge less shape memory alloy flap

The shape memory wire is used to manipulate a flexible wing surface. The wire on
the bottom of the wing is shortened through the shape memory effect, while the top
wire is stretched bending the edge downwards, the opposite occurs when the wing
must be bent upwards. The shape memory effect is induced in the wires simply by
heating them with an electric current, which is easily supplied through electrical
wiring, eliminating the need for large hydraulic lines. By removing the hydraulic
Department of Mechanical Engineering, MSRIT Bangalore

21

Shape Memory Alloys

system, aircraft weight, maintenance costs, and repair time are all reduced. The
smart wing system is currently being developed cooperatively through the Defense
Advanced Researched Project Agency (DARPA, a branch of the United States
Department of Defense), and Boeing.
Robotic Muscles: Shape memory alloys mimic human muscles and tendons very
well. SMA's are strong and compact so that large groups of them can be used for
robotic applications, and the motion with which they contract and expand are very
smooth creating a life-like movement unavailable in other systems.
Creating human motion using SMA wires is a complex task but a simple
explanation is detailed here. For example to create a single direction of movement
(like the middle knuckle of your fingers) the setup shown in figure could be used.
The bias spring shown in the upper portion of the finger would hold the finger
straight, stretching the SMA wire, then the SMA wire on the bottom portion of the
finger can be heated which will cause it to shorten bending the joint downwards.
The heating takes place by running an electric current through the wire; the timing
and magnitude of this current can be controlled through a computer interface used
to manipulate the joint.

Figure 21: Movement of middle knuckle using shape memory alloy in robot

Department of Mechanical Engineering, MSRIT Bangalore

22

Shape Memory Alloys

7. SCOPE FOR FURTHER IMPROVEMENT

A future application for SMAs that may become extremely important is in 'Smart
Materials'. Many structures are designed with reinforcements and backup systems
to provide for the worst case scenario. These structures therefore use more
materials and energy than is required for normal use. Smart materials would sense
their environment and modify their behavior in extreme circumstances thus
avoiding the need for reinforcement or backup systems. Smart materials would be
composite structures with embedded sensors and actuators. Thus the concrete
infrastructure of a bridge could contain sensors looking for cracks or corrosion and
embedded SMA actuators would counteract the strain induced by this degradation.
Similarly, an aircraft body could contain a thin layer of sensors that would monitor
subtle physical and chemical changes associated with fatigue and actuate a layer of
SMA to compensate for these changes and prevent failure.
Improvements regarding the limitations cited earlier like response time, structural
and functional fatigue must be carried out. Cost effective methods of
manufacturing Nitinol must be established to reduce the cost these materials
further.
Recent interest in the development of iron-base shape memory alloys has
challenged the concept that long-range order and thermo-elastic martensitic
transformation are necessary conditions for shape memory effect. Among the
alloys, FePt, FePd, and FeNiCoTi can be heat treated to exhibit thermo-elastic
martensitic transformation, and, therefore, shape memory effect. However, alloys
such as FeNiC, FeMnSi, and FeMnSiCrNi are not ordered and undergo non
thermo-elastic transformation, and yet exhibit good shape memory effect. These
alloys are characteristically different from conventional shape memory alloys in
that they rely on stress-induced martensite for shape memory effect, exhibit fairly
large transformation hysteresis, and, in general, have less than 4% recoverable
strain. The commercial potential of these alloys has yet to be determined, but the
effort has opened up new classes of alloys for exploration as shape memory alloys.
These new classes include Beta-Ti alloys and iron-base alloys.

Department of Mechanical Engineering, MSRIT Bangalore

23

Shape Memory Alloys

8. CONCLUSION
The many uses and applications of shape memory alloys ensure a bright future for
these metals. Research is currently carried out at many robotics departments and
materials science departments. With the innovative ideas for applications of SMAs
and the number of products on the market using SMAs continually growing,
advances in the field of shape memory alloys for use in many different fields of
study seem very promising.

9. REFERENCES
The websites referred are:
http://www.stanford.edu/~richlin1/sma/sma.html
http://web.archive.org/web/20031002100134/http://www.smainc.com/SMAPaper.html
http://webdocs.cs.ualberta.ca/~database/MEMS/sma_mems/sma.html
http://depts.washington.edu/matseed/mse_resources/Webpage/Memory%20metals/
applications_for_shape_memory_al.htm
http://www.copper.org/publications/newsletters/innovations/1999/07/shape.html
http://www.memry.com/sites/default/files/documents/Nitinol_Industrial_Applicati
ons_SMST00.pdf
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shape-memory_alloy

Department of Mechanical Engineering, MSRIT Bangalore

24